The Greatest Art Thief
by yellowrose900
Summary: When Neal refuses to help a former cellmate steal some paintings, the man kidnaps someone close to Neal to force his help.
1. Chapter 1

The Greatest Art Thief

Summary: An ex-cellmate of Neal's shows up and asks for his help to rob one of the cities largest art museums. When Neal refuses, the man kidnaps someone close to him to force him into helping.

Warning: A couple bad words and mild violence, no more then on the actual show.

Disclaimer: I am in no way connected to the show or its actors.

Note: Set in season two.

Note: I know very little about art and artists.

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Neal was sitting on the terrace at June's, enjoying his morning coffee and reading the morning paper. It was a Saturday and he had the entire weekend off, which was why he was still in his silk pajamas and robe at ten o'clock in the morning.

"Neal." June called out from inside.

"Out here June." Neal smiled, as the woman walked out onto the terrace. His smile vanished when he saw the man walking behind him.

"You have company." June said, as Neal stood up.

"Hello Neal." The man said.

"Hello Ryan."

"I will leave you two alone." June said, walking over to Neal. "I don't trust him, watch yourself." She whispered, and then left.

"I thought you were in prison." Neal said, as the other man walked around the terrace.

"This is a nice place." Ryan said, ignoring Neal's remark. "I would love to know the con you used to get in here."

"No con." Neal said, sitting down and motioning for Ryan to sit. "I have a very understanding landlady."

"Up to anything good lately?"

"No. How did you get out of prison?"

"Early release for good behavior."

"You?" Neal raised an eyebrow.

"The prison system is a very strange organization."

"True. Why are you here?" Neal was very uneasy having the man there. He had first hand knowledge of the man's temper and acts of violence. When they were in prison together Neal had witnessed him nearly beat a man to death.

"How would you like to make a million dollars?"

"With one of your plans? I'll pass."

"It's fool proof." Ryan said.

"Like the plan that landed you in prison? Five people were severely hurt, one almost died."

"People are expendable, the world's full of them."

"People are not expendable." Neal said, standing up. "I think it's time for you to leave."

"So you don't want to help me?"

"No I don't."

"What if I told you that you are the greatest art thief ever and that I really need your help to pull this job off?"

"The answer is still no." Neal insisted. "I have done many illegal things in my life, but I draw the line at hurting people."

"You will help me." Ryan said, with a smile that made Neal nervous.

"No I won't."

"Benny!" Ryan called out. A moment later, a tall man with broad shoulders walked onto the terrace. He had a hand wrapped tightly around one of June's arms, and a gun pointed to her head.

"Let her go." Neal hissed.

"I will, as soon as I get my money."

"What do you want me to do?" Neal asked.

"Rip off the New York Museum Of Modern Art."

"Security's tight, it will take a while."

"You have twenty four hours."

"That's not enough time."

"Twenty four hours, or your landlady here gets a bullet in her skull. I will stick to you; make sure you don't do anything stupid. Benny will keep your friend company."

"If anything happens to June, you won't have to worry about the law finding you." Neal said, his voice cold.

"Lets go, hero." Ryan said.

Ryan and Neal walked by Benny and June, on their way back into the room.

"I'm sorry June." Neal said, as he passed her.

"It's not your fault, Neal." She said.

"I will be back for you." Neal promised her.

"I know."

"Get moving." Ryan said. "And don't bother trying to cut your tracker when my back is turned, to alert the Feds. I will be keeping a very close eye on you. The museum is well within your two mile leash."

/

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An hour later, Neal and Ryan were sitting on a bench in the museum.

"Well?" Ryan asked.

"Like I said, security's tight."

"You only have twenty three more hours."

"I need help from a friend of mine."

"Who?"

"Just a friend." Neal replied, forming a plan. "He is very good at getting what I need to pull off jobs."

"This had better not be a trick."

"Do you want me to steal a few paintings or not?"

"Okay."

Neal pulled out his phone and called a familiar number.

"Louie's Pizza." A voice said on the other end.

"It's me, Moz." Neal said. "I need your help."

"With what?"

"It's complicated."

"How so?"

"I'm planning a new job."

"What?" Mozzie asked, surprised. "Neal….."

"Shut up and listen." Neal growled. "Can't you keep your mouth shut for once?"

"I'm sorry, go ahead." Mozzie said.

"I need you to pick up the suit I use for my jobs."

"The suite?"

"The suite."

"Anything else?"

"Yeah, take the suite with you to my sanctuary and grab my tools."

"Okay."

"Times not on our side, so make sure you pick the suite up first, to save time."

"Okay."

"I will be at the New York Museum Of Modern Art in an hour, meet me on the roof."

"I'll be there."

Neal hung up the phone, hoping that Mozzie got the message.

/

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Peter and Elizabeth were cuddled together on the sofa, watching a movie. Both groaned when they heard a loud knock on the door, then they heard the door burst open and then slam shut.

Peter stood when he heard the door open, and then glared at the man who had rushed in.

"What do you want?" Peter asked, annoyed. It wasn't often that he actually had some time alone with his wife.

"It's Neal." Mozzie said. "He's in trouble and I think June is too."

"What happened?" Peter asked, his anger gone.

"He called me, said he was starting a new job."

"A new job?" Peter asked.

"Yeah, but he was rude on the phone. He told me to shut up, Neal is never rude to me. I mean sure he might get a little testy and…."

"Get on with the story." Peter interrupted.

"Oh yeah, right. It was a warning, telling me he was in trouble. He told me to pick up the suite he used in his jobs. I'm guessing you're the suite. He told me to take the suite to his sanctuary, he made sure I knew to bring the suite with me."

"Where's his sanctuary?" Elizabeth asked, as her husband started putting on shoes and grabbing his gun and badge.

"June's." Mozzie replied. "He told me a couple weeks ago that June's place is his sanctuary."

"Be careful." Elizabeth said, as her husband kissed her.

Peter nodded, and then him and Mozzie rushed out of the house and to Peter's car. On the way over to June's Mozzie told Peter the rest of the conversation.

/

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June was sitting in her living room, tied to a chair. Benny was sitting in her recliner, and had it reclined all the way.

"I could get used to living in a place like this." He said.

"They don't allow prisoners to have recliners in their cells." June said.

"Tough old broad, aren't you?" Benny chuckled.

"Untie me and find out."

Before Benny could respond, the doorbell rung. Benny quickly set the recliner straight and stood up, then rushed to the door and looked out the peephole.

"You order Pizza?" He asked, seeing a pizza delivery man.

"Some weekends when Neal doesn't work, we order pizza and watch movies. We placed the order this morning when we found out Neal would be home." June said, hoping the pizza man was really a police officer. She knew Neal would find a way to get her help.

/

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"This is a really bad idea." Mozzie hissed, from behind a car he was hiding behind.

"It'll work." Peter assured him, as he once again rung the doorbell.

The front door opened and a large man walked to the gate.

"Pizza." Peter said, holding up a pizza box.

The man opened the fence and grabbed the pizza, shoving some money at Peter. "Now scram." The man said, as he turned and started back into the house.

Peter pulled his gun from his pants waistband and put the end of the barrel against the man's neck. "What, no tip?" He asked.

"Who are you?" The man asked.

"FBI."

Peter shoved the man into the house, keeping the gun against his neck. Mozzie was right behind them. When they walked in, they saw June tied to a chair.

"You two alone?" Peter asked her.

"Yes." June replied, relief evident in her voice.

Benny grabbed Peter's gun hand and used all of his weight to wrestle the gun from his hands. The gun skidded across the floor and went under the sofa. Peter and Benny fell to the floor, rolling around in the floor and trying to punch each other.

Mozzie watched them roll around in the floor for a moment, and then he grabbed a vase off of a table and held it in the air above the struggling men. He was waiting until they rolled over again, placing the bad guy on top. But when they rolled over, they bumped into Mozzie knocking him to the floor as well. Mozzie landed on top of Peter and caused him to loosen his grip on Benny.

Benny managed to break free and stand up, grabbing a fireplace poker and raising it above his head. Peter saw it coming and rolled out of the way, causing the poker to hit the floor. Then Peter kicked his leg out and caught the man in the stomach. He dropped the poker and grabbed his stomach, giving Peter time to get to his own feet. Peter drew his fist back and punched the man hard, knocking him to the floor.

"His partner has Neal." June said, as Mozzie untied her. "He wants him to steal something." June stood up, rubbing her wrist. "Peter, if he does steal….."

"I know." Peter said. "He didn't have a choice, he won't get in trouble with the law."

/

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Please let me know what you think. I will have another chapter up soon.


	2. Chapter 2

Thank you all for the kind reviews. And I want to thank MaraudingSnitch1314 for the Ryan thing, I didn't think about the bad guy's name being Ryan. It is not the same guy. Sorry if it confused anyone.

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Peter, Diana, Jones, and Mozzi were standing on the sidewalk just outside the museum.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Peter asked Mozzie. "It could be dangerous."

"I'm sure." Mozzie said, hoping he sounded more confident then he felt.

"You just have to stall for a little time, give us a chance to get everyone else off of the roof. Diana will stay near the door, out of sight, covering you."

"I won't let him do a thing to you." Diana promised.

/

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Neal and Ryan stood on the roof of the museum, along with a few other people milling around the exhibits. The roof contained the lesser known pieces of art work, and was never crowded.

Neal smiled slightly when he saw Peter and Jones walk onto the roof. Both men went in opposite directions and started looking at the exhibits, but Neal knew that they were watching him and Ryan.

"Where is your friend?" Ryan asked, in annoyance. "It's been over an hour."

"Here he is." Neal said, as he saw Mozzie walking their way. He was carrying a briefcase.

"I believe I have all of the requested items." Mozzie said, sitting the briefcase on the ground beside him. "I trust I will attain the usual percentage for my assistance."

"You will." Neal said, as he saw Peter and Jones discretely walking around talking to the other people on the roof. The people were slowly making their way off of the roof one by one.

"Are you planning a heist here?" Mozzie asked, stalling for time.

Ryan gave an eerie laugh, then quickly wrapped an arm around Neal's neck pulling him in front of his body and pointed his gun to Neal's temple.

"Nice try Agent Burke." He said. "I have done my homework, I know who you are. I also know who Agent Jones is."

"Let them go." Peter nodded to two men, the only patrons who had not made if off the roof yet.

"Go." Ryan said. "I think a couple of FBI agents are more then enough hostages."

The two men quickly fled the roof.

"Drop the gun." Peter ordered, as him and Jones pointed their guns at him.

"Don't think so." Ryan smirked. "Drop yours, or your consultant here gets a bullet."

"Go ahead." Peter said with a shrug. "He signed a waiver, the Bureau can not be held responsible if he gets killed while on the job."

"Thanks a lot, Burke." Neal said in disgust. He had seen movement in the doorway and knew that Diana was waiting there for a clear shot.

"Go ahead and shoot him." Peter said.

"How about if I shoot Jones?" Ryan asked, removing the gun from Neal's temple and aiming it at Jones. As soon as he did that, a shot rang out and Ryan dropped the gun with a yell of pain. He let go of Neal and clutched his injured hand.

"Nice shot." Neal said, as Diana walked onto the roof.

"Not really, I was aiming for you." She replied with a smirk.

"Is June okay?" Neal asked, ignoring Diana's remark.

"She's fine." Peter said. "But you better call her and let her know you're okay."

/

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That night, Neal lay in bed but couldn't sleep. Thoughts of what could have happened rushed through his mind; he knew things could have gone a whole lot worse. June could have gotten killed. Samantha could have been there when Ryan showed up. Those two thoughts kept popping up the most.

Neal had made a rule when he first started his life of crime, and he had always followed that rule. Until now. He had broken his own rule, and June nearly paid the price. He couldn't let her get hurt because of him, he couldn't risk her live. Neal loved June very much; she was the Mother that he never had. She was the one who made him chicken soup and made sure he took his medicine when he had a cold a couple months before.

She was the one who made sure he ate right, often bringing him dinner after a long day at work. June was always there when he needed a friendly face.

Neal sighed as he got out of bed, no use laying there if he couldn't sleep. He walked out onto the terrace and walked over to the edge, looking at the view.

He had it good, too good. He had grown attached to people, that was not a good thing. Making up his mind, he walked back inside and over to the table. He grabbed a pen and a piece of paper, and sat down to write the hardest note he had ever wrote.

/

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June knocked on Neal's door the next morning, but didn't get an answer. "Neal." She called out, but still no answer. June opened the door and walked in, figuring he was out on the terrace. But he was nowhere to be found.

Figuring he had already left for the day, she started to walk out of the room. Then she say an envelope in the table, it had her name on it. June opened the envelope and pulled out a letter written in Neal's handwriting.

"Dear June." She said out loud. "You have been a great friend and even a great Mother figure. But it is time for me to move on, I need my own place. Do not worry, I am not running, I am just moving. I need my privacy. Thank you for everything, I will never forget you. Please do not be angry, but this is the way it has to be. Please tell Sammy that I will miss her. Your friend, Neal."

June read the note several times, praying that the words would change. But they stayed the same. Neal was leaving.

/

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Peter was sitting in his office when Neal walked in.

"Elle has invited you to lunch." Peter said. "She wants you to taste some kind of fruity appetizer thing she wants to serve.

"Sorry, can't make it." Neal said, hoping Peter would leave it at that, but knew he wouldn't He had grown too accustomed to hanging out with Elizabeth also. He had to break that habit, he couldn't risk someone going after her because of him.

"Why?" Peter asked. "We don't have a case right now."

"I just can't make it. Is that all you wanted?"

"Yeah." Peter said, wondering what was going on. Usually Neal liked being used as a guinea pig by Elizabeth. "Something wrong?"

"No, I just don't want to spend my lunch break helping your wife further her own career." Neal snapped, and then stormed out of the office.

Peter started to go after him, to find out what was wrong. But his phone rung, he looked at the caller ID and saw that it was June.

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Neal and Mozzie walked into the motel room, the one where Neal was supposed to live when he got out of prison. Neal was using his lunch hour to move the rest of his belongings, having wanted to wait until June was not home before going back. He enlisted Mozzie's help.

"This is insane." Mozzie said, as he sat the box he as carrying on the floor.

"This is the way it has to be." Neal replied, his voice was distant and quite. Moving was heartbreaking for the man, and not because of the hot tub and cable that he had enjoyed at June's. it was heartbreaking because he knew he was hurting June, but he didn't have a choice.

"So you're just going to walk away from June?" Mozzie asked. "And Samantha? What about little Sammy, she…"

"What if she was there?" Neal demanded to know, his voice hard. "She could have been killed, so could June. All because of me. I broke my own Moz, now I have to fix it."

"It was a stupid rule." Mozzie said.

"Just leave." Neal said, his voice once again distant.

"So now you're pushing me away?"

"I've got to get back to work." Neal pushed past him and walked out.

/

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Peter was sitting at Neal's desk when the younger man got back from his lunch break.

"Something wrong with your desk?" Neal asked, as Peter stood up and Neal sat down.

"June called me, said she had been trying to call you all morning." Peter said, searching the younger man's face for a clue as to what was going on.

"I moved back to motel, it's well within my radius." Neal started doing paperwork, hoping Peter would take the hint and leave. But he didn't.

"Why'd you move?"

"Needed privacy."

"Neal….."

"Drop it, Peter. Please." Neal said in a pleading voice. "I need to do this."

"Why?"

"I just do. Please respect my wishes and drop it."

"I can't."

"Why?" Neal looked up into his eyes.

"Because I care about you, I want to help you."

"I don't need help, I just need to be left alone."

Neal stood up and started walking away.

"Where are you going?" Peter asked.

"To unpack, I'm using a sick day."

Peter watched sadly as Neal got on the elevator. He knew something was wrong, something was really bothering Neal.

/

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More soon, hope you like it.


	3. Chapter 3

Peter, Elizabeth, and June were sitting in the Burke's living room. Peter and Elizabeth were sitting on the sofa, and June was sitting in a chair.

"I am really worried about Neal." June said. "I know there was more to him leaving then just because he needed privacy."

"I know." Peter agreed.

There was a knock on the front door. Peter went to answer it, and returned to the living room with Mozzie.

"What's going on with Neal?" June asked Mozzie, as the two men sat down.

"He needed privacy."

"Do not lie to me; I know there is more to it. We want to help him."

"Did he tell you anything, Moz?" Elizabeth asked.

"Tell us." Peter said.

"When he first started committing crimes…I mean allegedly committing crimes." He quickly amended. "Neal made one rule, and he has followed that one rule all of these years."

"Neal Caffrey following a rule?" Peter asked, with a raised eyebrow.

"He followed this one." Mozzie said. "Swore to himself that he would never break it, no matter what. And he didn't, until he met you three."

"What was the rule?" Peter wanted to know.

"He swore he would never get close to anyone who could not take care of themselves. I may not look like it, but I can handle myself in many situations. Kate could always hold her own, she was a tough one. And you, Suit. You can handle yourself."

Then Mozzie looked from Elizabeth to June. "But you two are different; I mean I know you are not weak. But you don't have the defensive skills associated with our line of work. Neal can't get it out of his head that you could have been killed." He was looking at June when he said this. "Or that Samantha could have been there and gotten killed.

Then he looked at Elizabeth. "He doesn't want you hurt either, that's why he's staying away."

"Well I am not letting him do this." June said, standing up. "I am going to that motel and bringing him home."

"I'll go with you." Elizabeth said. "We will double team him."

"I've got to get back to work." Peter said.

"I have spoken until I was blue in the face." Mozzie said. "He will not listen to me."

/

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June and Elizabeth found Neal's room and June knocked on the door.

"Who is it?" Neal's voice called out.

"June and Elizabeth."

"Come on in, it's not locked. It doesn't even have a lock."

The two women walked into the room, and stared in confusion at the sight before them. Neal was sitting in a straight back chair staring at a mangy looking dog on the bed. The dog was sitting on the bed, staring at Neal. Neither blinked, just stared.

"Neal." Elizabeth said. "Where are you having a staring contest with a dog?"

"I'm trying to figure the best way to get the dog from the bed to the hallway without losing a hand." He replied, without breaking eye contact with the dog.

"Whose dog is it?" June asked.

"Not sure." Neal replied. "I think he comes complementary with the room, you know like those mints they put on your pillows."

"Quit pestering the dog, we need to talk." June said.

"He started it." Neal replied, finally breaking eye contact with the dog and looking at the two women.

"Out." June said firmly, pointing to the door.

"That won't wor….." Neal started, but stopped when the dog hopped off of the bed and trotted out off the room. "Guess it does work."

Elizabeth shut the door and the two women sat on the bed facing Neal.

"Mozzie told us about your rule." June said.

"He shouldn't have."

"Yes he should have." Elizabeth said.

"Look, my mind's made up." Neal said.

"Then un-make it young man." June said, in the same tone she had used with the dog. "Elizabeth is the wife of an FBI agent, there's always a risk that one of the people Peter is trying to arrest will try to harm her. Does that mean that Peter should pack his bags and move out?"

"No." Neal sighed. "But…."

"But nothing." June said, her voice still firm. "My husband was a world class con artist, he made a lot of enemies. Should he have left me? We both are used to the risk of loving people who makes enemies."

"I couldn't live with myself if I caused you to get hurt." Neal said. "Either of you."

"Neal." Elizabeth said. "You are family, you have been for a while now. We are not just going to let you do this, you belong at Junes. You belong at our house for dinner or movie night. You don't belong here alone."

"You know we're right." June said, her voice was now soft. "So you might as well just agree with us."

Before Neal could respond, the door burst opened and a very large man walked in. He was well over six feet tall and was real muscular.

"Can I help you?" Neal asked, as he stood up. June and Elizabeth also stood up, they were slightly behind the man.

"I've got a message from Ryan." He said, pulling out a gun and aiming it at Neal. "Goodbye." Then he started to pull the trigger.

"Duck!" Elizabeth called out a warning to Neal, as she did the only thing she could think of. She jumped onto the man's back and dug her fingernails into his face. The man yelled, and then tried to grab her.

June grabbed the phone off of the table and slammed it into the man's wrist, forcing him to drop the gun. It slid under the bed.

The man twisted hard, causing Elizabeth to lose her grip and fall to the floor. The man turned to June and took a step forward. Neal ran towards him and tackled him as had as he could. The force of the tackle sent them both into the hall, where they were struggling with each other.

The man finally got the upper hand and slammed Neal into the wall, then drew his huge fist back to punch him. But he didn't get the chance. June and Elizabeth both rushed to them, both armed with a straight back wooden chair. June slammed hers into the man's side, causing the chair to break and causing the man to let go of Neal and grab his side. Elizabeth slammed hers in the man's back, causing her chair to break also.

The man turned to the women, and pulled a knife from his jacket pocket. Then he moved towards them. Neal slammed into him once more and the force of it sent them both several feet forwards, right to the stairs. Both men tumbled down the stairs and landed at the bottom. Neither man moved.

"Neal!" June shouted as her and Elizabeth rushed down the stairs.

The intruder was unconscious, but Neal was awake. He was trying to get up when the women made it to him.

"Don't move." Elizabeth said, you've been stabbed. The man's knife was stuck into Neal's shoulder.

Then Neal slipped in unconsciousness also. Elizabeth took off her jacket and pressed it to his shoulder to stop the blood flow.

"An ambulance is on the way." The manager of the motel said, him and a small crowd of people were standing a few feet away. "So are the cops."

"Neal." June said, gently cradling the man's head. "Wake up, Neal."

Neal's eyes fluttered opened slightly.

"Stay awake." Elizabeth told him. "Help's on the way."

"I am still sticking to the rule." Neal said, his voice weak. "But I'm moving back in, if the offers still good."

"Of course it's still good." June said.

"I'm keeping the rule." Neal repeated, his voice getting weaker. "You two can definitely take care of yourselves. In fact, I might just hire you two on as bodyguards." Then he once again slipped into darkness.

"Neal." June said, "Wake up." But he didn't respond.

/

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The next morning, Peter helped Neal up the stairs at June's to his room. He had just picked the younger man up from the hospital.

"So the goon rolled over on Ryan?" Neal asked, as he hobbled up the stairs. His foot was in a walking cast, due to a bad fracture. His left arm was in a sling to prevent the weight of his arm from pulling on his injured shoulder.

"Before we even got him to the station."

Peter opened the door to Neal's room and helped him inside.

"Neal." June said, smiling. Her and Elizabeth were fluffing several pillows that they had placed on the sofa. "Come over her and rest, Elizabeth and I made you some home made chicken noodle soup. You need to build your strength back up."

Peter helped him to the sofa and eased him down onto it, so he was halfway laying down.

"Are you okay, Neal?" Elizabeth asked, as both women fussed over him. They re-fluffed the pillows, and pulled a comforter up around him.

"I'm fine." Neal smiled. "Thank you." Then he winced as he moved his arm.

"Peter." Elizabeth said. "Did you get his medicine?"

"Right here."

"Well don't just stand there, get him some water so he can take some."

Then she went back to fussing over the younger man.

Peter watched his wife and June for a moment with a scowl, and then he smiled. Neal needed a little fussing over, he'd earned it.

THE END

Hope you liked it. I am about to start another story and hope to have it posted soon. Please let me know what you think.


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